Contrasting effects of mixed farming on bats are mediated by local and landscape features and differ between seasons

Abstract

Homogenisation of agricultural landscapes, driven by intensive farming, is one of the key drivers of biodiversity decline in Europe. Whilst government schemes to address this have benefitted some species, they have been less successful for bats, which likely require a landscape-scale approach due to their high mobility. ‘Mixed farming’, where livestock are integrated into arable crop rotation, has been proposed as a landscape-scale approach to biodiversity loss and could benefit bats via increased diversity of foraging habitats, both spatially and temporally (e.g. in the autumn when arable fields are ploughed, pasture may provide an alternative source of insect prey). We investigated direct and indirect effects of mixed farming on bat activity and how these effects change between seasons. Bat activity was quantified on 26 farms in Scotland (UK) in summer 2022 and in autumn 2023 and 2024 using acoustic methods. Landscape composition and configuration data was also collected using CEH landcover maps. This data set was used to assess the direct and indirect effects (via local features and landscape attributes) of mixed farming on bats at two different times of year.